Post subject: Re: Early 1900s---children sent through the mail? Who knew!

Posted: Oct 8, 2013 8:00 am

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Oh, my goodness! "After parcel post service was introduced, at least two children were sent by the service. With stamps attached to their clothing, the children rode with railway and city carriers to their destination. The Postmaster General quickly issued a regulation forbidding the sending of children in the mail after hearing of those examples.”I'm happy the Postmaster General issued a regulation forbidding it!

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Post subject: Re: Early 1900s---children sent through the mail? Who knew!

Posted: Oct 8, 2013 9:36 am

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i_ski_do_u wrote:

When my kids were teenagers, there were times when I wished I could have mailed them somewhere, anywhere.

Years ago I asked a thrift store solicitor on the phone if they accepted 14 year old boys. Without missing a beat she replied "Yes ma'am. If you have him in a bag on the curb by 8 in the morning they'll take him."

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Post subject: Re: Early 1900s---children sent through the mail? Who knew!

Posted: Oct 9, 2013 3:55 pm

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Location: Southwest Plaza area

my oldest son ,,, now aged 44 , about 45 yrs ago ,, I wished I could send him away ,,, I kinda still wish that , ain't seen him in 7 months , younger son , age 39, he's Jack Benny , juz don't know it yet ,he shows up like a bad penny , once a week or so ,, ta pick up hiz son ,,wife sits wif tha kid ,,tha kid is nuttin but trouble ,we loves him tho , he's blood kin ,,

Post subject: Re: Early 1900s---children sent through the mail? Who knew!

Posted: Oct 9, 2013 5:44 pm

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Joined: Oct 7, 2004 8:21 pm

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Victorianhistorian wrote:

i_ski_do_u wrote:

When my kids were teenagers, there were times when I wished I could have mailed them somewhere, anywhere.

Years ago I asked a thrift store solicitor on the phone if they accepted 14 year old boys. Without missing a beat she replied "Yes ma'am. If you have him in a bag on the curb by 8 in the morning they'll take him."

The precursor to the foster care system. Farms and ranches were the receiving end for most who offered work in exchange for relief from the city-crowded orphanages and dangerous city streets. More than 150,000 were estimated as transitioned through the program, started in railroad's infancy in 1854.

Post subject: Re: Early 1900s---children sent through the mail? Who knew!

Posted: Oct 9, 2013 6:33 pm

Oh my, Big Time poster!

Joined: Dec 30, 2007 2:59 pm

Posts: 4445

That brought to mind another story. I was doing social work in a nursing home back in the early 70s, and I was interviewing a woman in her mid-90s about her life. She said she had been a nurse and midwife in several communities as was her mother before her. She related that she had a brother who was in reality a baby her mother had brought home shortly after his birth. She said they were lucky to get a boy as most of the time if the doctor delivered a boy and the family just couldn't face another mouth to feed or if the mother died in childbirth that the doctors usually took the boys. The nurses or midwives got the girls. In fact, she got one of her daughters that way but had never told her. I kept her secret but after the old woman passed the daughter said she always wondered if she was adopted as she 'just didn't look Italian like the rest of the family.' The family just loved their mom to pieces. Even though I knew what the woman had told me, I never shared it with the daughter. I think she may have been beating around the bush if I knew anything but it just wasn't my place to tell her. SO many stories in this old world.

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